Projected Funding for Biotech Sector in Next Decade
Ministry of Trade and IndustrySpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the projected funding needs and government support for the biotech sector over the next decade as raised by Ms He Ting Ru. Minister Gan Kim Yong explained that while granular funding gap data is unavailable, the sector is expected to grow by 8% annually. Support includes A*STAR’s Singapore Therapeutics Development Review programme and EnterpriseSG’s efforts to channel venture capital and investments into local startups. Funding is also available through Startup SG schemes, which received S$300 million in Budget 2020 to catalyze private investments for deep-tech firms. Additionally, the Government has committed S$25 billion to the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan to support the sector.
Transcript
18 Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) how much funding is projected to be needed for the biotech sector over the next decade; (b) whether the Government plans to provide any funding to the biotech sector; and (c) if so, what is the breakdown of funding for (i) pre-clinical (ii) clinical and (iii) commercialisation stages respectively.
Mr Gan Kim Yong: We do not have such granular information about the funding gaps in the biotech sector. That said, we expect the sector to grow by around 8% per annum1 and for its funding needs to increase correspondingly.
The Government is supporting the sector’s funding needs in several ways. First, sector-specific initiatives such as the Singapore Therapeutics Development Review (STDR) programme run by A*STAR nurtures our existing base of researchers and grooms them into potential biotech founders. EnterpriseSG continues to grow our biotech venture ecosystem in Singapore by working with venture capitalists and builders to channel more investments to Singapore-based biotech startups.
Biotech companies in Singapore have various schemes to tap into. For example, the Startup SG Tech grant and the Startup SG Equity investment scheme help to de-risk early developments and catalyse private investments. During Budget 2020, S$300 million was added to the Startup SG Equity scheme to catalyse more than S$800 million of private funding for deep-tech startups. The Government has also committed $25 billion to the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan.